Labor Statistics from Bureau Of Labor Statistics

      BLS

EXTENDED MASS LAYOFFS IN THE THIRD QUARTER OF 2008
                                   
   In the third quarter of 2008, employers initiated 1,330 mass layoff
events that resulted in the separation of 218,158 workers from their
jobs for at least 31 days, according to preliminary figures released
by the U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics.  Layoff
events reached their highest level for the third quarter since 2001,
while separations reached their highest level since 2003.  The total
number of layoff events was 312 higher in the third quarter 2008 than
the same period a year earlier, and the number of associated
separations increased by 58,134

 Among the seven categories of economic reasons for layoff, business
demand accounted for the highest share of events (43 percent) and
number of separations (76,979) in July-September 2008.  (See table B.)
The largest over-the-year increases in the number of separations
occurred in layoffs attributed to business demand factors (+27,711)
and organizational changes (+10,533).  Within business demand, the
number of separations due to slack work nearly doubled to 41,116,
while in organizational changes, layoffs attributed to business-
ownership changes more than doubled to 11,692.  Within financial
issues, the number of workers terminated because of bankruptcies
nearly doubled over the year to 12,156.

   Permanent closure of worksites occurred in 15 percent of all
extended mass layoff events and affected 50,025 workers during the
third quarter of 2008.  Thirty-one percent of employers reporting a
layoff indicated they anticipate some type of recall, down from 38
percent a year earlier and the lowest third quarter proportion since
2002.  Excluding seasonal events, employers anticipated recalling
workers in 20 percent of the layoffs, matching third quarter 2002 as
the lowest proportion for any quarter since data collection began in
1995.

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